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by Vincent Martorano
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AUSTIN, Texas — Following the terror attacks in New Orleans and Las Vegas, Austin Police will be adding new security measures that will change the way Sixth Street looks moving forward.
"They don't want something like that like what happened in New Orleans to happen here," Calvin Smith said on 6th Street.
Vik Flair was also on 6th Street the night the safety precautions were put in place.
"It made me feel more secure, and made 6th Street more safer," he said.
He said he saw dump trucks blocking the ends of the streets, sidewalk barricades to keep people from walking into the street, and an increase presence of law enforcement. On Saturday, Austin's iconic entertainment district is back to normal, only with increased police presence. Flair said he usually feels safe on 6th Street, but this past week, he felt even safer.
"I still feel the same because not too much happens here like that," he said," "But the extra security made it feel better."
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Austin Police Chief, Lisa Davis, said help is on the way.
The department ordered new equipment that will keep people safe on the sidewalks, but also start to allow cars to drive down the street. She said this starts with curb edges that will increase the sidewalk size.
"These are about 12-18 inches high, as well as some other balusters that are nailed into the ground. That will take up the parking along 6th Street," she said.
Davis said this equipment was supposed to arrive in Austin on January 9, but the order is delayed. When the equipment is installed, she said there will be more Traffic, and DUI enforcement officers monitoring the street.
"This has been closed since the 80's I believe? So, it has been tried multiple times to open the street, and it can be done, but we have to be very thoughtful of how we do it," she said.
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